Media Release – Housing’s Real Needs Not Dealt with by First Home Owners Saving Scheme

National Shelter calls on both major parties to extend their new bipartisanship on first home owner saver schemes to other more vital areas of housing policy.

Over the past 23 years, social housing levels have dropped from 6% nationally to 4.8% and below 3% in Victoria.

National Shelter has called instead for the development of a National Housing Strategy, which examines all the components of our housing system, including reforms to tax, planning, the relative contributions of state and commonwealth governments, the role of business, investors, and the private and community sectors.

National Shelter spokesperson Mr. Adrian Pisarski said, “This scheme won’t help reduce homelessness, it won’t build more social housing, and it won’t deliver more affordable rentals.”

“There might be some merit in this idea if it became a properly developed national shared equity scheme, but there is too little detail to make that judgement.”

“At the moment, it risks enticing heavier borrowing by first home entrants which could leave them in negative equity if markets continue to fall. This would be poor policy.”

“Adhoc announcements at the end of election campaigns generally don’t make good long-term policy.”

“The ALP has been sensible in announcing long term plans to build the supply of affordable housing using revenue gained from reforms to negative gearing and capital gains tax measures. This will limit speculative investing and rebalance markets, while building a greater supply of affordable and social housing. Those are things we need.”

“When we desperately need more spending in social housing, we can’t get cross-party agreement. Now that they have begun to agree on lifting first home ownership, perhaps they will start agreeing on other measures.”

For more information on National Shelters housing policy comparison, click here.